Logitech 920 scarcely Recognized After Big Sur Update

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Level 2

186 points

Logitech 920 scarcely Recognized After Big Sur Update

I have this same problem - where the Logitech c920 webcam will be almost impossible to activate. This is not plug and play.

With a lot of fiddling with Facetime and Photobooth, I can sometimes get one of them to halfway work. But I have zero interest in using either Factime or Photobooth - but when I downloaded to install the Logitech 'Logi Capture' software - it refuses to recognize the camera - regardless of it's its plugged into a peripheral or directly into the back of my 2018 Mac Mini.

I find Logitech help website is useless. I once asked a question on the Logitech Mouse software... and got no answer after months of waiting. But then more than a YEAR after I posted, a Logitech tech person wrote back... but I had already bought a new mouse by then. Unreal lack of any support.

Does anyone know of a Mac software running Big Sur that allows an easy plug and play software - so I can just plug in this currently useless webcam and have it working for a full screen use to record the screen? Seems like a failure of Big Sur to make this webcam so hard to connect to and use, when it's supposed to be a no-brainer plug & play.

I notice that Big Sur seems to have 'dumbed down' the web cam controls in Facetime and Photobooth - so now there is no way to select the camera.

Thanks...

Posted on Sep 10, 2021 4:44 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

James Brickley

Level 5

4,636 points

Sep 11, 2021 12:39 PM in response to Missy5937

I have this precise camera "HD Pro Webcam C920" listed under USB Devices in the About this Mac -> System Report -> USB and I have an M1 Mac Mini. It does not require any software to function. I find the Logitech Capture software to be rather useless. If I require capturing the camera for screen-casting, I use Open Broadcast Studio OBS, Zoom, etc. instead.

Check where the camera is plugged in and try plugging it directly into the Mac Mini versus any sort of hub, etc. There are 2 USB type A ports on the Mac Mini. The review the About This Mac -> System Report -> USB listing. You should see the camera listed. If it's not listed then something is causing the problem such as a damaged cable, bad camera, bad USB hub, bad adapter, etc. Eliminate the possibilities. Unplug everything and try just the Camera with your monitor attached.

I have zero problems detecting this camera on either a PC or any Mac. It is super compatible with most everything and just plain works without any drivers needed. It works with FaceTime, QuickTime Player, and Photo Booth and the only problem I've run into was it doesn't default to the microphone on the Logi C920 and I have to specify it for each App. Seems to remember the setting for the next time. The only one that fails to let me do that is Photo Booth and in that specific case, I have zero audio recording ability with Photo Booth unless I change the system default audio input device to be the microphone on the Logi C920.

I've never had issues with the camera not being detected.

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Answer 2

Missy5937

Community Specialist

Sep 11, 2021 12:08 PM in response to John Nez

Hello John Nez,

Thanks for using the Apple Support Communities. We understand that you're having an issue using your webcam with your Mac mini. Would you let us know how you're connecting the webcam to your Mac? Which port connection are you using? If you switch to a different port, does the issue persist? The following discussion on Apple Communities, does provide tips, however, it does seem based on the type of connection you're using: USB 2.0 Webcam on New Mac Mini

If haven't done so yet, please go to System Preferences > Security and Privacy > Camera. Are you able to select your webcam for use, using this option?

Best regards.

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Answer 3

John Nez Author

Level 2

186 points

Sep 11, 2021 1:21 PM in response to James Brickley

Thanks everyone for your replies and info.

Basically I can now get the webcam to show full size... so I guess in that regard it works. (But yesterday I couldn't get it to work for some reason. Also the Logi Capture software still won't recognize the webcam from my mac mini... )

It's just that for my purposes of trying to use the webcam to record a video of my work in progress, I think it won't work - mostly because of the GIGANTIC file sizes that seem to be generated. I see that the webcam consumes about 10 mgb of data every 10 seconds... or a megabyte a second. And even at that size, the video quality is kind of awful and I am unable to modify the over saturated colors. So the file is way too big and the quality isn't that great.

Instead I imagine I'll go back to filming my work in progress with my iPad camera... which gave much better quality, far better colors and with iMovie way easier to edit and the file sizes are more manageable.

So thanks everyone!

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Logitech 920 scarcely Recognized After Big Sur Update

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